Path of Fire
by TavVermare
Summary: An ARC trooper is one of the best weapons the Republic has . But what happens when the ARC realizes that the government he serves is not as perfect as he believed it to be? Find out in Path of Fire.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

**Kamino, Tipoca city**

**68 days ABG**

ARC trooper Alpha 23 stared at the wreckage of droids scattered over the water covered landing pads. The battle had been his first, but not his last. He'd been locked in stasis after he'd finished his training under Fett. The Kaminoans seemed to think that he and his brothers were too 'dangerous' to be given the freedom to roam around the cloning facilities. They'd been right, of course, but since the enemy had assaulted Kamino, apparently two months since the completion of his training he'd been activated, with the rest of the Alpha ARCs. Now he was alone, besides a few clone troopers that worked to clear the landing pads. They made sure to keep their distance.

Not that he'd done anything to threaten them. He'd spoken perhaps a dozen words throughout the entire engagement. Fett had taught him to fight, not talk, and the Kaminoans hadn't exactly encouraged idle chit chat. He stood underneath the dome of one of Tipoca cities' facilities, watching the rain that he'd known since his earliest days fall into the freezing waters of the ocean below. His rifle, a WESTAR-M5 blaster rested on his leg, as he examined the body of the weapon for damage. He'd used it to knock a B1 battle droids bird-like head clean off. The blaster was sturdy though, or at least stronger than the cables and durasteel holding a droids head on.

The WESTAR wasn't the only weapon he had. Included in his arsenal was a DC-15S carbine, a DC-17 side arm, a vibroblade housed in his left hand gauntlet, a miniature flame-thrower in his right gauntlet, and a plethora of grenades. He was, quite literally, a one man army. He'd been trained to act as one, and was equipped to take on most missions with a degree of perfection that no one else could accomplish. However, now that the battle was over, he wasn't sure what was going to happen to him. Would he be put back in stasis? Sent off on a mission? Or assigned to one of the many Jedi generals that were on the planet, that had fought against the attacking separatists?

He didn't know, but personally, he hoped it was one of the two latter options. Now that Alpha-23 had gotten a taste of combat, he realized he enjoyed the rush of adrenaline, the risk of dying, even as he blasted apart the spindly battle droids. He just wanted to be able to fulfill the purpose he'd been trained for.

Satisfied that his weapon was in optimal condition, he lowered it. He stood, and turned his back on the clean up that was still going on. The battle had left a lot of debris on the outdoor platforms. He decided to go inside and investigate the damage there. For most of the battle, he'd been outside the facilities, sabotaging troop transports with a well placed shot, or tossing an EMP grenade into a platoon of droids when they were on the narrow bridges that led from platform to platform.

The damage inside wasn't so bad. Most of the fighting, except in a few isolated areas had been outside. For the most part, the cloning vats and clone children were intact. He knew what he'd been ordered to do, in the scenario that the separatists got their hands on kids. 'Asset denial'. All ARCs had been personally ordered by Fett himself to terminate the kids if it looked like the separatists were winning. Personally, Alpha-23 was relieved that they'd avoided that outcome. He wouldn't have hesitated of course, he was trained too well for that. But, still, he would have regretted killing the children, if only because he'd have been taking assets from the Republic. The government he'd been bred to serve.

"ARC trooper twenty three. Report to my office immediately"

He recognized that voice. It belonged to Orun Wa, one of the Kaminoan scientists, and if he'd heard right, the one that was responsible for the Null-class ARCs. Now _those _guys were crazy. Uncontrollable, psychotic, even. He'd heard that they'd tried to kill Wa when they were kids, not that he blamed them. Apparently, the only thing that had saved the scientist was Kal Skirata. One of the C_uy'val Dar_. Those that no longer exist. A Mandalorian, like Fett, with a hatred for Kaminoans. Something that Alpha-23 could sympathize with, to a point. The Kaminoans had performed all kinds of tests on clones, including himself. He wouldn't have shed a tear if the droids got every last one of them.

He arrived at the office, where Orun Wa waited, along with a fairly tall human female, with long dark hair, blue eyes, and wearing the tunic and robes of a Jedi. A lightsabre hung from her belt. He removed his helmet, and saluted the Jedi, before turning to Wa. He did not salute the scientist, and the Kaminoan noticed. His grey eyes narrowed dangerously, but he didn't say anything in the presence of the Jedi. _'I'm not a kid any more. You can't threaten me into submission.' _

"You called, sir?" He said, feigning respect.

"I did. It seems that you have been assigned to master Kohl. You leave immediately"

Alpha-23 had to struggle to keep a grin from breaking out on his face. He was finally leaving this miserable, wet planet behind.

"A pleasure to meet you, ARC trooper. I look forward to working with you" the Jedi said, inclining her head gracefully.

"As do I, general Kohl" he replied.

"Our gunship is waiting on platform thirteen. I have a few things to finish up here, and then I will join you"

Alpha-23 left the facility, and almost ran to platform 13. He was finally going to do what he'd been made to do.


	2. First Mission

**Hey guys, here's chapter 2 for you. Most of these chapters will be fairly short between 1500 and 4000 words. That may change. Anyways, enjoy and review!**

**Chapter Two**

**Aboard the RAS _Defensor_**

**First Mission**

**85 days ABG**

The planet was name Cartrell, positioned in the outer rim, and ARC trooper Alpha-23 tried and failed to see its' strategic significance.. The separatists had decided it was important enough to take over, probably because of its' large deposits of Neuranium. It was primarily trees, with a few mountain ranges, rivers, and oceans. From the tactical holo, it looked like the droids were assembled on one of the larger continents. Near one of the mountain ranges was a cluster of buildings. Neuranium refineries, according to intel. He stood in the war room of the Republic assault ship _Defensor_. "As you can see, the separatists have chosen a central location to defend from." General Kohl said, "intelligence believes that the separatist general has set himself up near the refineries. The droids will have set their defences accordingly"

She looked up at him. "Destroying the refinery, will be your objective, Alpha twenty three." She turned to the clone commander standing beside him. "Commander Voss. You and I will lead the main assault, and Nate you will lead a small detachment along the enemy's flank, and support Alpha twenty-three." The apprentice inclined his head, but Alpha-23 scowled.

"Ma'am. With all due respect, I don't need support" _  
_

Kohl looked at him, but didn't seem irritated by his protest. "Nevertheless, we can't afford to lose ARC troopers by having them outflanked by the enemy. Nate and his men will support your flank"

Voss stared at him, and it was clear that the commander neither liked nor trusted him. Alpha-23 wasn't terribly bothered. He'd always known that normal troopers wouldn't like the elite units such as himself. As long as they stayed out of his way though, he wasn't going to complain. "Understood, general" he said quietly.

"Get to your transports, gentlemen. And may the Force be with all of us"

He left for the hangar bay, where gunships were already taking off, heading for the planet's surface. The general and two commanders sprinted for their wn gunships, while Alpha-23 headed for his own gunship. A clone trooper stood beside it, and the pilots were already inside the cockpit. The larty was matte black, and he recognized it as a stealthed variant. Used for high risk missions where a TIV would stand out and a disguised vessel couldn't be acquired. The trooper saluted "sir! We're ready to depart"

He climbed aboard, and rapped his knuckles on the door separating the troop bay from the cockpit. "let's get on with it then" the ships blastdoors closed and he felt his stomach lurch slightly as the larty left the artificial gravity of the assault ship.

"Stealth systems engaged" reported the pilot.

The clone trooper stared at him, and Alpha-23 tilted his head to the side. "Something on your mind, trooper?" He said quietly.

"No sir. I'll be relaying information to you throughout your missions. We're approaching the landing zone" he replied.

Alpha-23 nodded. "Okay then. You have a name, trooper?"

"CT-1823/1133, sir" the trooper replied.

The light in the troop compartment switched from red to green, and the transparisteel doors slid open. Alpha-23 attached his rappel line to the gunship floor, and nodded to '33. "I'll see you after this place is rubble, thirty-three" he said, and dropped off of the LAAT/s. He knew that while he was in the air, he was the most vulnerable. It was dark out, and the white plastoid-alloy would draw mark him as a target. He unclipped the line, and glanced around, having his helmet scan for hostiles as he did so.

He wasn't actually inside the facility. Even the stealth tech of a LAAT/s couldn't get him right on top of it, but he was fairly close. His scans indicated that his immediate area was clear of droids, and he rose from his crouching position, checked the charge on his blaster, and made his way forwards. It wasn't long before the he found the refinery, and heard the sounds of battle from the rocky plains, where the 56th infantry engaged the droids. As far as he could tell, it didn't look like the seps had heavy cannons or tanks.

Just waves and waves of battle droids. And, the refinery was in a location that would have turned any infantry assault into a massacre. The narrow chokepoint meant only a squad of droids could defend against a much larger amount of troopers for a very long time. _'Which is why I'm here' _23 thought to himself, as he headed down a steep path, that lead to the refinery. He could see battle droids patrolling outside, but none of them looked like they'd realized he was making his approach.

As if to mock his attempts at stealth, a loose rock that he'd made the mistake of placing his weight on slid and tumbled down the path, creating a small rock-slide as it did so. Three droids turned to look at the slide. Then they followed its trajectory up to him, and were promptly blasted with six precise shots, from his WESTAR-M5. He was skidding down the rest of the path as they collapsed to the durasteel floor. "Hopefully they don't notice they're three clankers short" he muttered to himself.

He was in front of what he guessed was the rear entrance. Slightly larger than a normal door, with a rather pathetic security system. He removed a lock slicer from one of his belt pouches, and inserted it into the door control panel. While the slicer worked, 23 kept a wary eye out for droids patrolling at ground level. Nothing. Either the sep general had ordered the bulk of his droids to the front line to slow down the 56th, or there was an _osik _load of droids waiting for him inside.

The slicers light turned from red; working, to green; success. The door slid open, revealing two B1 battle droids. Both were just now turning to face him, and 23 acted fast, stepping forwards and slamming the butt of his rifle into the underside of one droids head, and turning to face its' companion, ejecting his vibroblade as he did so. The blade punched neatly through the metal of the droids skull, and it shuddered as it's 'brain' was deactivated. He didn't have time to enjoy the victory. Its companion was already recovering, and bringing its' blaster up.

23 lowered his shoulder and rammed the thing, his momentum carrying it into the wall, and more importantly, knocking its' aim off. He knew that if the droid managed to get a shot off, it would bring all kinds of trouble down on him. He got a grip on the droids angular head, and twisted. Breaking a droids neck was different then breaking a wets, an organic. Instead of a wet 'crunch' there was a soft _pop-sizzle _noise as wires and connections were ruined. The droid slumped, and 23 lowered it to the floor.

He kept moving, deeper into the refinery. He reached the central area, made up of conveyor belts, and melting pots, along with large bins holding chunks of rock, and what he assumed were raw neuranium. He didn't know too much about refineries, but he did know how to blow stuff up. The place looked like it was fully automated. There were several mining droids against the far wall, offline, and no guards. _'What do the seps want with neuranium, anyways?' _He wondered as he set his charges. _'The stuff is way too heavy to use in droids. And if they're using it in their tanks, they'd need to develop a better repulsor system for the AATs.'  
_Charges set, he left the ore refining area, and started making his way to the top floor, using the stairs, rather than the turbo lifts. While the lifts were much faster, there was no cover if a patrol was waiting for him.

He didn't need to hurry, since the charges were rigged for remote detonation, rather than a timer. He had all the time in the world. Unless, of course, the droids converged on his position. He reached the top floor of the refinery, and heard the _clank-clank _of droid feet on the durasteel floor. 23 dived for cover, using a crate of supplies for cover. It was, by no means, the best hiding spot, but getting into a fire fight and alerting the sep general he had an uninvited guest was not an option.

The droids marched past him, a column of three, completely oblivious to the ARC hunkering behind a crate. Once they'd turned the corner, 23 blew out a sigh of relief, and wondered if it would be too much to ask for stealth coating on his armour. He emerged from his hiding spot, and made his way through the corridors, arriving at what must have been the generals' office. Or at least, it looked like it. Unlike every other room in the place, it had a polished, teekwood door, with a brass handle. Alpha-23 stopped outside, and studied the portal for a moment. Why people in positions of power felt the need to have nicer things than everybody else, he couldn't even begin to fathom.

Sure, he had better kit than the grunts of the 56th, but he didn't shove it in their faces. It looked like this sep general was doing exactly that, which was pointless, since as far as 23 knew, there were no other organics in the place. And droids weren't known for admiring the décor. His booted foot blew the door open quite nicely, and the general, poring over a datapad, nearly leapt out of his seat. "Who-" the man said, his head snapping up to glare at the intruder. Then he paled.

23 must have cut an intimidating figure in his white armour, tinted T-visor, and grey kama and pauldron. Not to mention the arsenal of weapons slung about his person. The general, in contrast, was nothing special. He wore a separatist uniform that barely held over his bulging stomach, and he was balding, with bloodshot, beady eyes, that were currently wide with shock. He didn't bother speaking. There was nothing to say. He simply drew his pistol and shot the man. His head snapped back, a blaster hole punched though the center of his forehead, a thin wisp of smoke emerging from it.

23 noticed an open computer at the desk, and walked over to it, shoving the general and his chair aside. The ARC glanced over the information and searched through the device in search of more, uploading data that he felt might be useful to command. he didn't read all of it. That was some desk jockeys' job in intel, not his. He just went where told and slotted the bad guys. When finished, he blasted the computer as well, to make sure no one would be able to tell what had been uploaded. After that, he exfiltrated the facility, and started moving back to where the stealthed gunship had dropped him.

Then he heard a desperate voice in his ear. "Alpha twenty-three, do you copy? This is commander Tsaren. We're pinned down!"

23 grimaced. This was exactly what he'd been afraid of. The Jedi had compromised his mission, and now he and his troops were about to get themselves killed. "Give me your co-ordinates, commander. I'll be there as soon as I can"  
A notification on his HUD popped up, pinpointing the location of the Jedi commander and his men. "Got you"

"Hurry! We can't hold out much longer!" Was the not quite panicked response.

Alpha 23 picked up the pace, moving at a steady jog around the refinery, and towards the Jedis' location. It only took him a couple of minutes before he could hear the sounds of a pitched fire fight. A minute after that, and he could see the bolts of energy tearing back and forth. The commander and his troops were entrenched on top of a rocky hill, firing down at perhaps twenty battle droids. 23 knew he wouldn't be able to take on all of them. Not out in the open, anyways. But he did have a fair amount of EMP grenades that would turn the tide.

He slung his WESTAR over his shoulder again, and removed a pair of grenades. He tossed both of them, aiming for the centre of the group. The electromagnetic pulses wrecked a dozen of the B1s, and the others began to turn towards him, to face the new threat. He opened fire with his rifle, and the troopers emerged from cover long enough to wipe out the remaining droids. After the shooting had stopped, commander Tsaren approached, lightsabre hilt in his hand, his robes smoking from near misses. "Thank you. You came back for us"

Alpha 23 nodded. "Of course, commander. It's harder to breed more Jedi than it is to grow clones" he said simply. "33. Mission accomplished. Transmitting co-ordinates" the trooper acknowledged, and the stealthed gunship came into view, a shadow against the night sky. 23 climbed aboard with the remaining troopers and commander. He removed the detonator from his belt, and depressed the button. The resultant fireball was _very _satisfying.

"That's endex" he muttered, watching the flames climb into the night sky. They danced as they did so, and 23 found himself transfixed by them. How could something so dangerous and destructive move with such fluidity? He wondered. On a whim, he looked up words associated with fire. Flame, Blaze, Raze...that word...to demolish, destroy completely, erase. Very much what Alpha twenty three did. "My name is Raze" he whispered to himself.


	3. Reassignment

**Chapter Three **

**Reassignment**

**131 days ABG**

Raze stared at the datapad in his gloved hand, and reread the order. No, he hadn't misread it. He'd been reassigned from the 56th infantry, and was to report to Arca barracks as soon as the _Defensor _arrived at Coruscant. He wasn't entirely sure how he felt about that. He'd fought with the 56th ever since leaving Kamino, and he respected both general Kohl and commander Tsaren. Commander Voss had even started to warm up to him, after a while. At the same time...he was almost relieved. When working with the 56th, he'd been prepping the battlefield, mostly. Taking out anti air and artillery guns, sabotaging shields, things like that. While he had no problem with that, it was a job more suited for commando units. **  
**

ARCS like him were supposed to be out in hostile territory, doing what they did best. Establishing guerilla armies, assassinating leaders, destroying factories single handedly...A knock at the door drew him from his contemplations. "Come in" the door slid open, and General Kohl stepped inside, her dark hair gathered together in a single long braid. "General. What can I do for you?" Raze asked, coming to his feet.

The general motioned for him to return to his bunk, where he'd been sitting on the edge of it. He complied, and she said "commander Voss tells me you're leaving us"

He nodded, brandishing the datapad. "Yes ma'am. I received my orders. Transferring to Arca barracks on Coruscant."

The general nodded, not glancing at the 'pad. " I see. And you believe you'd be of more use with the special forces" it wasn't a question, and Raze didn't bother denying it. "Well, in that case; it's been an honour, my friend" she said warmly, and stood, extending her hand. Raze stood as well, and shook it.

"The honour's been mine, general" he replied. She left after that, and the rest of the trip passed quickly. He received a notice that they'd entered Coruscants orbit, and the assault ship was descending into the atmosphere. As it settled on its massive landing gear, the ramp acclamators used to deploy troops lowered ponderously. The men of the 56th infantry had formed into their company's and filed down the ramp. Raze followed, and for the first time in his life, saw Coruscant. Star scrapers stretched higher than the eye could see, and hundreds, no thousands of airspeeders zipped back and forth.

It was also the first time he'd disembarked from a friendly ship without someone trying to shoot, stab, or blow him up. It was...unique. Movement caught his eye and he noticed a trooper marching towards him, not from the 56th. "Excuse me, sir. Are you ARC trooper alpha 23?" The man definitely wasn't part of the 56th. Most of those knew him by sight, since he was the only ARC assigned to them.

He nodded "I am"

The troopers helmet tilted, then he nodded a few times, as if he was talking to someone on his helmet comlink. "Come with me, sir. Orders are to get you to Arca barracks ASAP." The trooper led him to an idling gunship, which took off as soon as Raze was on board. The blast door remained open allowing Raze to see the rows and rows of buildings that stretched as far as he could see. The airlane they were in was reserved for GAR vessels, so the trip was quick and smooth.

The gunship dropped him, and took off, probably back to the trooper barracks. Arca was a hub of special forces activity. Commandos were in the courtyard, some in armour, some not, talking or playing a ball game, kicking it against the barracks wall. A few of them glanced up at him, then away. They must have seen plenty of ARCs, and Raze, in his scuffed white armour, and grey pauldron and kama, was nothing special. He made his way towards the barracks, and was almost to them, when the doors opened and two men walked out.

One wore boots, dark pants, and a bantha hide jacket; civilian clothing. The other was an ARC captain, and he wore a pair of dc-17 pistols in hip holsters. The civilian, he recognized from his years of exploring Tipoca city on his off hours. Sergeant Kal Skirata, a volatile Mandalorian training instructor, one of the _Cuy'val Dar_. He'd been one of the Mandos' in charge of training the commando units, and one of the many that held hatred for the Kaminoans. The ARC could only be ARC captain N-11. Ordo. One of six Null-class ARC troopers, the only ones that had come before the Alpha class. In Razes' opinion, the whole lot of them were complete nutters. He'd seen them terrorizing Kaminoan technicians, pulling stunts that would have gotten any other clone terminated immediately. They were fiercely loyal to Kal Skirata, and Raze had questioned their loyalties more than once...privately, of course.

The two men diverted slightly towards him, and Raze closed the distance, stopping in front of them and snapping to attention. They may have been psychos', but they both outranked him. "Captain. Sergeant." He nodded politely.

Skirata stared into his visor, a polite, but slightly embarrassed smile on his face, as if being call by rank was somehow embarrassing. Ordo returned the nod. "Alpha 23, right?"

"It's 'Raze', now, sir" Raze stated, and Ordos' helmeted head tilted, as if surprised. Raze knew that all the Nulls thought Alpha ARCs' were boring and obedient, content with their lot in life.

Skirata, on the other hand, smiled broadly, and clapped Raze on the shoulder. Rumour said that he'd encouraged independence in the ranks. This confirmed it. "Good for you. Off to see old Zey, now?"

"Yes sir. I've been reassigned from the 56th infantry." Raze said, and Ordo jerked a thumb over his shoulder.

"Maze is waiting for you" the Null said, which must have been their cue to leave,

because Skirata patted him on the shoulder again, said "_K'oyacyi_" and the two of them departed.

Raze made his way inside the barracks, and encountered another ARC captain. He stopped and saluted. "Captain. ARC trooper alpha 23 reporting."

Maze nodded, and motioned for him to follow. "Welcome to Coruscant, trooper. You got a name?"

He hesitated for a moment, before nodding "Raze, sir." The captain paused and looked over his shoulder at him, a completely unnecessary gesture, given the wraparound vision provided by his helmet.

"Good name." Was all he said, keeping his voice neutral, before turning to face forwards again. "Come on. General Zey is expecting you"

The pair of ARCs traversed the barracks corridors, until they reached the director of special forces' office. Maze knocked, and immediately, the generals' voice called them in. The doors opened, and Maze nodded for him to precede the captain. He stepped inside, and saw General Arligan Zey, sitting at a rather plain desk, hands steepled in front of him. A datapad at his right hand, a small holo-projector in front of him, and a stack of the same device on his left. He smiled at Raze, and glanced at the datapad on his right. "Ah. Alpha 23, welcome to Coruscant. I look forward to working with another experienced ARC. " He gestured to the datapad. "Your record is quite impressive"

"Thank you, general." Raze said. He wasn't sure what else to say.

"I'm sure you're eager to learn your assignment." Zey tapped at his 'pad, and with a flick of his finger, activated the projector. A world appeared, "this, is Altraxis. A world in the outer rim, formerly famous for exporting crystalline sculptures. Mostly, made up of ice, with a few large cities" the general explained. "Recently, we'v recieved word that the world wishes to secede. Republic Intelligence believes the planetary governor, Bernus Hall, has been corrupted by the separatists. They believe he's planning to secede. Your assignment is to eliminate him, before the separatists move in to secure his allegiance"

Raze, like all ARCs had memorized the names of worlds that were on the GARs' strategically important, must-not-lose list. Altraxis wasn't one of them. In fact, it wasn't even considered remotely important, in terms of strategy. No major hyperspace lanes went through it, no bases or shipyards were stationed on the planet, or even in its system. "Sir, with all due respect, what's the point of holding onto this planet? It isn't exactly strategically vital to the war, is it?"

Zey stared at him for a few moments. "An intelligent question, trooper." He clicked a remote in his hand, and the projector showed a view of the entire sector, with lines that had to be trade or hyperspace lanes. "No, Altraxis itself isn't important. But, a few years before the war broke out, they were a major trade hub. Most of the planets' in the sector established trade routes to it. When Altraxis' economy plummeted, most of the sector forgot about it, but the trade routes remain. If the separatists win over the governor, they could take the entire sector with minimal effort" the general explained, and Raze nodded.

"When do I leave?" He asked.

"Now." The general replied. Raze left the barracks feeling oddly optimistic. Sure, an entire sector was on the line, but Raze was finally doing what he'd been bred to do. The separatists had no idea what was about to hit them.


End file.
